Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Computing/2015 February 26

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February 26

that nice young man

Supposing I had a Windows computer, and supposing that I took the advice of that earnest caller from “Windows Technical Support” — what typically happens?

(So far either they hang up when I press for the identity of their employer, or I string them along until I get bored and say “It's not working because I have a Macintosh.”)

I do have a Windows VM that I haven't turned on in months. Would whatever-it-is work on that? —Tamfang (talk) 04:34, 26 February 2015 (UTC)

I've played along quite a while, and they show you the error log on your computer, which invariably shows thousands of errors since the O/S was installed. This is designed to cause panic in the sucker user, who then agrees to pay them around a hundred dollars to clean out their PC. Now what happens when they get your credit card number I do not know. They might bill you exactly what they agreed to and then direct you to a web site where you can get any one of many free malware removal tools. Or they might bill your credit card until they hit the limit and never deliver anything at all. StuRat (talk) 04:43, 26 February 2015 (UTC)

Careful, as something like that can be the final stage in confirming your identity for a ransomware hack. Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie | ^{Say Shalom!} 7 Adar 5775 04:57, 26 February 2015 (UTC)

See Technical support scam. PrimeHunter (talk) 05:04, 26 February 2015 (UTC)

There are quite a few videos on YouTube where people have recorded their conversations with these scammers - try searching for "windows support scam" or similar. AndrewWTaylor (talk) 09:04, 26 February 2015 (UTC)

Yes, I've gotten several of those calls - the most recent one was about a week ago. IGNORE THEM!! Bubba73 ^{You talkin' to me?} 05:03, 2 March 2015 (UTC)

If you do want to see what happens, I'd recommend using a prepaid credit card, so that they can't hit you for too much, and a spare PC, so you can zap it after you've checked what they've done. — Preceding unsigned comment added by LongHairedFop (talk • contribs) 10:25, 26 February 2015 (UTC)

I've personally had someone try to get me to start a logmein session, which would basically give them remote access to the computer, from where they coudl install or do anything they want. Search through your email, documents, financials, install a keylogger, back door, root kit, etc. Vespine (talk) 04:55, 2 March 2015 (UTC)

If (in the interest of Science) I let them wreck my VirtualBox VM, what should I restore from Time Machine? —Tamfang (talk) 06:47, 2 March 2015 (UTC)

First of all, make sure the rest of your hard drive is not accessible to the VM. Then, all you have to do is copy the virtual machine hard disk image before you begin, and let them wreck the copy. -- 143.85.169.18 (talk) 15:25, 2 March 2015 (UTC)

I work in IT and I would NOT recommend this. While most scammers ARE "dumb" and will just prey on the easy targets, unless you are very confident you know what you are doing (which no offence it doesn't sound like you are, otherwise you wouldn't be here asking), it's not impossible that just by letting them through your perimiter (firewall NAT etc..) they wouldn't be able to then somehow compromise the rest of your network, some other device on your netowrk, your host machine, etc... it does sound like fun, but I think your risk is far higher than the reward. Vespine (talk) 23:22, 2 March 2015 (UTC)

"autovisual media"

What is/are "autovisual media" as mentioned in AVFoundation? Should it just say "audiovisual media?" And what does the article mean by "framework" since it just links to a disambiguation page? Edison (talk) 19:44, 26 February 2015 (UTC)

Source agrees with your first query. The other is probably "software framework". Discuss-Dubious (t/c) 20:01, 26 February 2015 (UTC)

In Apple technologies, "framework" has a very specific meaning. See: What Are Frameworks from the Framework Programming Guide. A framework is a specific directory-structure that contains a dynamic library, its resources, and its headers. Nimur (talk) 16:58, 28 February 2015 (UTC)

Facebook application controlling system

Hello, I would like to know, how facebook application is controlled, is it controlled from one country or from different country? -- (SuperGirlsVibrator (talk) 20:05, 26 February 2015 (UTC))

This was originally asked at the Misc desk, and the OP was advised to move the question here. I've taken the liberty of copying the replies. LongHairedFop (talk) 16:24, 27 February 2015 (UTC)

Apology, I did not realise you meant relocating the post... -- (SuperGirlsVibrator (talk) 18:16, 27 February 2015 (UTC))

What did they say when you asked them? Nanonic (talk) 18:32, 25 February 2015 (UTC)

Or what did our article say? KägeTorä - (^影_虎) (Chin Wag) 18:44, 25 February 2015 (UTC)

BTW, you might have been better asking this in the computing desk. www.facebook.com and api.facebook.com resolve to different IP addresses, depending on where you are located (api means Application Program Interface, and describes how two bits of a program communicate, or an application communicate with its server). I haven't checked, but I would assume that the addresses are routed to separate datacentres, at least one on each continent. LongHairedFop (talk) 10:45, 26 February 2015 (UTC)

Yeah, that's what I was thinking at first, which is the reason I asked. Thanks for introducing me to 'api'; new to me. -- (SuperGirlsVibrator (talk) 19:57, 26 February 2015 (UTC))

Internet money making possibilities

Does anybody know how I could make money from the internet? E.g., ‘Pay per click’, getting paid for ‘every e-message’ I send, and so on. Note that the two quoted are probably the easiest for me… I need to make quick money in a small time… I’ve searched the internet for years, I’ve not found anything as such, whatever I found so far, it is either long to do, less money or untrustworthy. I need help please… -- (SuperGirlsVibrator (talk) 20:07, 26 February 2015 (UTC))

Too many people in third world countries doing it already for peanuts. Try this approach:[1]. On a plus side, you will not be stuck indoor all day and slaving over a hot keyboard. Its all tax free too!--Aspro (talk) 22:29, 26 February 2015 (UTC)

Okay, thank you. I’ve saved the link; I’ll view it at the starting of next month… -- (SuperGirlsVibrator (talk) 19:58, 27 February 2015 (UTC))

There's no reliable way to earn a lot of money quickly without much skill or training, online or IRL. It's possible to get lucky, but not easily repeatable. See also Get-rich-quick_scheme#Online_get-rich-quick_schemes. SemanticMantis (talk) 15:09, 27 February 2015 (UTC)

I'll read through... Thanks. -- (SuperGirlsVibrator (talk) 19:58, 27 February 2015 (UTC))

You won't make a lot of money fast, but Mechanical Turk is a basically legitimate way to earn some money online. SemanticMantis (talk) 19:34, 27 February 2015 (UTC)

You can make a fortune off the Internet. For one thing, there's a lot of demand for people who can design and create Web pages and Web sites (that is, people who know HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Wordpress, Joomla, etc.) and it's easy to train yourself how to do it. There's also a lot of demand for people who can administer the servers that run the Internet (people who know how to configure and monitor Microsoft IIS, Apache, SQL Server, Postgresql, Oracle, MySQL, etc.) and it's easy to train yourself in those technologies, too. There's also some demand (albeit less than the above) for people who understand how to configure the equipment that routes traffic through the Internet (that is, people who understand BGP, Cisco IOS, Juniper JunOS, etc.). So, you can train yourself and once you feel comfortable with some of these technologies, put them on your resume. Once you land an interview, the interviewer will quiz you and if you know you're stuff, they will hire you, degree or not. Trust me. I know from experience. The labor market in the U.S. is getting tight and you can get a good salary.

But I've never met anyone personally who's made a fortune without doing any work, unless they inherited the money. If you get impatient and start signing up for Internet-marketing programs, you'll probably end up losing money. I've known people who just signed up for a bunch of get-rich schemes that involved sending e-mails or spamming sites. They lost money every time, because it was a scam. One of them even got in trouble with the police. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.—Best Dog Ever (talk) 02:30, 2 March 2015 (UTC)

You are right about web page designing, there is a value in this country I'm in, plus money. I haven't come to the stage of learning it yet...(It will probably be 1-3 years before I start learning it...) -- (SuperGirlsVibrator (talk) 08:26, 2 March 2015 (UTC))

If you find a security hole, you can responsibly disclose it to the relevant company. Using the Inspector on Firefox (might be elsewhere, too) can give you some ideas on how to compromise a site. Sometimes it's complex, but sometimes there are glaringly obvious things, even to laymen. Once you figure something out, write the company and ask for the Chief Information Officer. Indicate to him/her what sort of damage exploiting the hole can cause, and name a reasonable price for the info. Make it clear that you're trying to help them, not blackmail them. No ultimatums or threats. Let them know that if they don't want the details, you'll just sit on the info, not give it to a competitor, grey market buyer or the general population. InedibleHulk (talk) 03:34, 2 March 2015 (UTC)

What you mentioned, people like this are filled in this country, and they get so much money... These people learn hacking, try hacking other systems, find a whole, inform... They work in a bunch of groups... Others do/have to pay up just to keep the 'virtious' roles active in human beings/nature... -- (SuperGirlsVibrator (talk) 08:26, 2 March 2015 (UTC))

If you prefer slightly harder, slightly shadier work for slightly better and substantially steadier pay, you could take off the grey hat and go nightcrawling. You'll have to get offline to find and film things that may traumatize or kill you, but you can relax at your computer during negotiations with any of these wonderful people.

You'll need faster upload speeds than your local competition, though. Net neutrality is good news (in theory), but business practice is always another story. InedibleHulk (talk) 05:39, 2 March 2015 (UTC)

I suppose you could also use this approach with things that don't lead and don't bleed. Try to keep an eye out for anything remotely interesting going on in your neighbourhood. If it seems too boring, you can always frame it as something hotter. InedibleHulk (talk) 05:51, 2 March 2015 (UTC)

I would love to, I been dying for a camera for some years. I'm good with things like this. I'm just in front of computer 24/7. I cannot upload because my internet is not as fast as it should've been, regardless, I can't upload anything whatsoever because I'm on 'pay bite as you'. I don't even go to any websites, until or unless you peeps guide me to...(I do go to the adult websites many times ) -- (SuperGirlsVibrator (talk) 08:26, 2 March 2015 (UTC))

That reminds me, you could try being a cam whore. Even if you're absolutely hideous or boring, Rule 34 suggests you'll make some money, eventually. The startup camera isn't as expensive as for news, and the video quality standards are lower, so would work with moderately crappy Internet. InedibleHulk (talk) 16:02, 3 March 2015 (UTC)

Thank you friends. Some things to look forward to in the near future... -- (SuperGirlsVibrator (talk) 08:26, 2 March 2015 (UTC))